Clarity
by Circlique
Summary: A trip to a tropical island helps Alfred discover a few things about his communist rival…and his feelings towards him. America/North Korea. Oneshot.


It was an afternoon of peaceful bliss.

A small motor boat, a cooler full of sandwiches and soda, and an uninhabited island all to themselves. The clear, brilliant blue of the ocean matched that of the sky, and the white sand was like powdered crystal beneath their bare feet.

For once, their world was at peace.

Normally, having America and North Korea together in such a situation would have been a recipe for disaster. But lately, the two had been getting to know each other better and…were finding each other's presence to be surprisingly enjoyable.

Maybe Alfred was just naïve. He wanted to believe that every person had good in them. Some people might have called him crazy to try to see good in the man representing the world's most cruel and repressive regime, but he genuinely believed Sang Kyu was a good guy underneath his prickly exterior. After all, every nation cared about their people and Sang Kyu was no different. He couldn't control everything his leaders did. Alfred certainly couldn't.

So, he'd spent the last few years getting to know him better. Randomly inviting him to events he otherwise wouldn't have. Randomly inviting him to come, out of the blue, to America, for no reason other than that he wanted to try and mend some ties between them. They'd been to amusement parks, had movie nights, gone camping…but Alfred was surprised to find that Sang Kyu didn't spend much time at the beach.

"North Korea has a coast, right? You don't just…go to the beach?" he'd asked.

"No," the Korean had replied almost forlornly. "Most of the beaches are off-limits."

"Why?"

"They have mines."

"…Why?"

"To prevent invasion by sea."

Upon learning that his poor communist companion had rarely spent a day at the beach, he'd promised to take him to the best beach his country had to offer. And to sweeten the deal, he'd promised they'd have it all to themselves. That was why he'd chosen this little island off the coast of Florida, uninhabited, away from the scores of tourists who flocked to the shores this time of year.

Despite being small, the island had a surprising number of places to explore. There were rocky outcroppings and a dense forest, and of course stretches of sugar white sand. The two of them had stopped near a tide pool earlier that afternoon, where Alfred showed Sang Kyu all the different wildlife that inhabited the seas there. They stood on what might as well have been the edge of the world, looking out on the open ocean from a low cliff (which Sang Kyu had pushed him off of into the water, laughing). They ate lunch beneath the palms and enjoyed the sun and the surf and the salty wind on their faces.

Now, they lounged on that perfectly white sand next to a perfectly blue cove. The day could not have been better and Alfred could not have been happier. Seeing Sang Kyu relaxed was like seeing a whole different person. It was as if the waves had washed away his outer façade, leaving only his true colors to show, as clear as the water surrounding them. As Alfred was finding out, when he was away from the press and the politics and the stresses of being a nation, Sang Kyu was much more like his brother, and surprisingly charming. It left Alfred really, truly, wanting the best for him—wanting him to live a life that was fulfilling and full of happy moments—and Alfred realized he wanted to be there to share in his joy.

Alfred stretched out on his towel, taking up way more space than he was allotted, much to the annoyance of his companion.

"Your hand is in my face," Sang Kyu muttered, shoving the American's hand back towards him.

"No it wasn't!" Alfred protested, now purposefully putting his hand right next to the Korean's face with a chuckle. "Now it is."

"Stop!" The Korean fussed, kicking good-naturedly at the American now. "You have a whole island to lie down on and you choose to be as close to me as possible!"

"Of course," Alfred practically purred, smiling whimsically as he now reached for the other's hand. "You're supposed to stay close to those you love."


End file.
